A lone traveler walks past a nearly deserted TSA security checkpoint at Orlando International Airport ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Milton on October 9, 2024 in Orlando, Florida.
Paul Hennessy | Anadolu | Getty Images
There is a threat of a government shutdown, especially at the start of the peak holiday travel season.
Lawmakers found themselves at an impasse, voting Thursday against a short-term bill backed by President-elect Donald Trump to continue funding the U.S. government. If no agreement is reached, the shutdown could begin as early as 12:01 a.m. ET on Saturday.
Hundreds of thousands of government workers would be furloughed if Congress doesn't pass a spending bill.
A government shutdown could cost the U.S. travel industry $1 billion a week, estimates the U.S. Travel Association, which represents major hotel groups and others.
“It's hard to imagine how anyone in Congress can win by forcing TSA workers, air traffic controllers and other essential employees to work without pay during one of the busiest travel times of the year,” Geoff Freeman, the group's president, said in an interview statement on Friday.
What does this mean for air travel?
Commercial aircraft flights are still planned, although there is a possibility of a shutdown.
Airlines are predicting the busiest year-end holiday season on record. The Transportation Security Administration expects its officials to screen more than 40 million people during the holiday season through Jan. 2. United Airlines The company alone said it transported 9.9 million people between December 19 and January 6, up 12% year-on-year.
The government considers the more than 14,000 air traffic controllers and nearly 60,000 TSA agents essential, meaning they would continue to work even though they would not be paid during the shutdown.
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Are you preparing for longer lines?
TSA officers “would continue to work without pay in the event of a closure,” the agency’s administrator, David Pekoske, said on the social media platform X on Thursday.
“While our staff has prepared to handle high passenger volumes and ensure the safety of our transportation systems, an extended closure could result in longer wait times at airports,” the TSA said in a statement Friday.
What happened last time?
The last government shutdown lasted more than a month, from late 2018 to early 2019.
Operations by some air traffic controllers in the heavily congested airspace on the US East Coast brought air traffic to a standstill during this closure. Then-President Trump and lawmakers soon agreed to end the shutdown, the longest funding gap in U.S. history.
Traffic jams have angered airlines. Meanwhile, the Federal Aviation Administration is again without a permanent administrator after FAA chief Mike Whitaker, appointed by President Joe Biden last year, said he would resign on Jan. 20 when Trump takes office.
Modernizing air traffic control and hiring more air traffic controllers should be the FAA administrator's next priority, Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian told CNBC earlier this week.
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